Even the economic gains that are used to justify tourism development may prove illusory. A destination may be receiving foreign tourists, but they may be on tightly packaged tours where they book through agencies, lodge in hotels, are toured by guides, shop in stores, and eat in restaurants all owned and operated by their foreign compatriots. Very little of the tourist cash thus enters the local economy, but the environmental impact of their waste, and the social impact of disrespectful and even exploitative behaviour, remains.
